March 30th
Rick took a moment to compose himself before ringing on Collette Hawthorne's doorbell. It had been years since he'd met a girls parents, the last time had been Lori's. Which was comparatively easy compared to this. For a start they'd been dating for months, and more importantly he hadn't knocked her up after a one night stand.
"Negan! Quit barking!" It was Michonne's voice he heard first behind the door. "Hey!" She said as she opened it to him, holding Negan by the collar as he strained to see their new visitor. "Come in."
He stepped inside, making sure to pay due attention to Negan who had stopped barking long enough to sniff at Rick's feet.
"Hey, who's this good boy?!" He scratched behind Negan's ears to the tune of delighted grunts from the old dog.
"You'll have to excuse him." Colette made her appearance from the kitchen and placed an arm around her daughter's shoulders. "He's just curious." Colette had the same smile as Michonne, the smile that lit up the room and the same warm eyes. Rick felt his nerves evaporate as the two of them stood in front of him.
"He's fine." Rick scratched at Negan's head again. "I'm Rick Grimes." He held out his hand for Colette to shake. "It's a pleasure to meet you ma'am."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Rick. Please call me Colette." She giggled, already being won over by his Southern charm. She tried to remember if Michonne had let on just how handsome he was. She certainly didn't mention that his cheekbones could cut glass, nor did she warn her she'd get lost in his blue eyes.
"I brought some apple pie." He held out the dish. "Home made from my mom's recipe."
"Smells so good!" Colette inhaled the sweet apple and cinnamon scent as she took the dish from Rick and placed it on the kitchen counter. "Come through. My sister Elodie is gonna join us too, you're lucky Michonne's other aunts are out of town or you'd have had quite a loud first meeting."
"She's right." Michonne nodded as she fixed them all a homemade lemonade.
"So Rick." Colette began as she led him out into the garden and gestured for him to take a seat next to her at the wooden table. "Tell me about yourself. I want to know everything."
"Everything?"
"All the interesting parts."
"Well, my name is Richard Grimes Junior. I'm from a place you've probably never heard of; King County, Georgia. I left there at 21 to work on a construction site in Manhattan. Got lucky with a little thing I invented and now I run my own company."
"He's being modest." Michonne said as she placed the tray of lemonade down. "He's an international businessman."
Rick blushed. "I have a son, Carl." He changed the subject. "He's seventeen years old, and pending one final adoption hearing next month he'll be legally mine."
"Michonne told me about Carl. He seems like a sweet kid."
"He is, most days."
"Teenagers are nightmares. You should have seen this one at seventeen." She raised her eyebrows in Michonne's direction.
"I've heard girls are worse." He nodded with a frown, wondering how any child could cause him more trouble than Carl.
"Ours will be an angel, like I was. Don't listen to her." Michonne piped up.
"So Rick." Colette paused to take a sip of her lemonade. "How long were you married for?"
"Mom!"
"It's ok." Rick said gently. "Together for eight years, married for five of 'em."
"And has your experience put you off marrying again?"
"Mom!" Michonne shouted again. She shook her head and concentrated on her phone and her group chat with Jesus and Sasha.
"Rick doesn't mind." Colette decided, nudging him with her elbow causing him to laugh.
"To be honest, I don't know. For a while it did. I didn't even date really after Lori. But then lately I've been feeling like maybe it's ok to open up again. Like, maybe the next time it'll be someone that doesn't want to hurt me." He was looking directly at Michonne. His bright blue eyes meeting hers. She returned to her phone to try and suppress the weird warm feeling building in her stomach.
"Amen to that." Colette patted his hand. Rick was spared further questioning by Elodie arriving.
"Jesus he's beautiful." She said almost immediately she walked into the garden. She put down the huge bowl of potato salad down on the table to free up both her hands to hold onto Rick's face. "That bone structure!"
"This is Elodie." Michonne laughed.
"It's a pleasure to meet you." Rick said from between her hands, seemingly completely un-phased by the stranger in his personal space.
"You too, handsome." She released him and went to kiss Michonne. "I'm just saying." She patted Michonne on the cheek. "That your faces, working together, that's gonna be a pretty baby."
"I'm sorry about them." Michonne said to Rick in a quiet lull in Elodie and Collette's line of questioning. "They're lovely but I don't think they know the line between appropriate and inappropriate."
"Are you kidding? I love them." He smiled. "And wait until you meet my mom, then you'll see how far that line can be pushed."
They sat out in the garden until the sun began to fade in the distance. Collette warned Rick about how spicy she was going to season the chicken, Rick assured her he could handle it and stoically made his way through almost an entire bird with his eyes watering the entire time.
Collette brought out the apple pie and Michonne tried not to look at Rick directly as they ate, remembering how she had devoured apple pie in his kitchen post coitus during their one and only night together.
"Even Negan likes him." Colette whispered to Michonne as they watched their big dog lay his head on Rick's lap. Rick absent mindedly stroked between his ears as he talked to Elodie. "He's normally so grumpy with new people isn't he?"
"I think Rick has that effect on everybody." Michonne nodded quietly.
"I'd better get going." Rick stood up eventually once all the food had gone, and the lemonade had been drunk.
"Thanks for coming, and thanks for that delectable apple pie!" Collette stood up along with him.
"You're very welcome, thanks for all the food! And the hospitality. This was such a nice afternoon." He said earnestly as he hugged Collete and Elodie goodbye.
"I'll walk you out." Michonne held his arm as they left the garden.
"How'd I do?" He bit his lip nervously as he whispered the question, hiding behind his open car door.
God he's cute. Michonne hadn't seen him look so vulnerable, Rick was one of the most confident people she knew. How could he not realise he made a great impression, how could he not have noticed her usually composed mother tripping over herself just to make sure he had enough salad or a full glass of lemonade. Even the pain in the ass dog loved him.
She rubbed his arm, nodding to put his mind at ease before leaning in to give him a kiss on the lips. She had missed kissing him, though she made sure to keep it short and sweet. As she pulled back his lips were still puckered, her action stunning him into dumbfounded silence.
"You did good, babe." She giggled before turning around and sauntering back to the house.
She hesitated before walking back to the garden, already picturing her mother and aunts faces as she returned to them.
"Come on then." She sighed as she sat back down on the swing.
"You marry him!" Elodie shouted. "You marry that man!"
Michonne and Colette dissolved into giggles, Colette moved to sit next to Michonne and wrap her arms around her.
"He's a good one, baby. You were right."
"I know mommy."
"Any particular reason he's not your boyfriend?"
"It's not that easy Mom."
"Every man isn't gonna be like your father, Michonne. And every man isn't gonna be like Mike. If someone's showing you they're a good guy, you should believe them."
Michonne rested her head on her mother's shoulder as they gently rocked the swing back and forth.
"This is why I prefer law." Michonne joked. "Less complicated, less messy, there's normally a right and wrong answer."
"Certainties are boring. Love is fun."
Michonne felt the familiar nervous knot in her stomach as she waited for Rick to answer the call. Sat on the bed in her childhood bedroom.
"Couldn't get enough of me, huh?" Rick chuckled as he answered the call.
"You busy next weekend?" She got straight to the point before she lost her nerve.
"Next weekend? Nope." She could hear the smile in his voice even through the phone.
"Ok good. Is it alright if I take you on a date?"
"A date?"
"A date."
"Fuck yeah!"
Michonne giggled. All nerves evaporating as usual when she spoke to Rick for longer than 10 seconds.
"Great. Pack an overnight bag. I'll pick you up at midday Saturday."
"Ok..." He laughed, trying to keep his composure and not sound too giddy. "It's a date."
